The primary goal I have set for myself as a future educator is to establish a foundation in my classroom for lifelong learning. I want my students to acquire universal learning skills that they can apply, not only to science, but to all other content areas including their everyday lives. These universal skills include, reading comprehension, writing, inquiry, and critical thinking.
Reading and writing skills are important not only in science, but also in every other content area as well as life. In my classroom I plan to use strategies to help students improve their reading comprehension and content knowledge by having them summarize subtopics, and use thinking maps as a way to organize their thoughts based on the type of material they are reading. Through the use of thinking maps students can also increase their metacognition by mapping out the way in which they view concepts that they have recently read. I also plan on using prewriting strategies to break down the writing process for students and allow them to follow the step by step procedure for both in general and in science. For students to become good writers they need to understand the writing process.
I will also provide my students with a variety of phenomena that will require investigation and questioning to determine the how and why behind it. One of the most important skills that a student can obtain is the ability to inquire and ask questions. Participating in scientific inquiry will contribute to the students’ inquiry development by requiring them to ask questions, discover answers, and ask more questions based on their answers. Students will be able make connections between the various phenomena and nature. By exposing students to such phenomena allows them to make connections to the outside world and also apply their knowledge to the outside world. Students should be able to build on their previous knowledge, make connections, and apply what they are learning in the classroom to the outside world. Having the ability to make these connections and apply them leads students to further their inquiry and knowledge. The more connections the students make between the classroom and the world, the more knowledge they will accumulate. Through scientific inquiry, my students will be able to take control of their own learning by navigating their direction through the questions they ask and the discoveries they make. By providing my students with hands on, self-discovery, and exploration activities students will be able to think like a scientist.
Lastly, I also want my students to be able to think critically and go beyond the scope of the general facts. I want them to build on their previous knowledge, make connections, and apply what they are learning in the classroom to the outside world. In order to do this I will provide my students with many open ended questions where there is no right or wrong answer. These types of questions will allow students to combine their prior knowledge and new knowledge and apply it to the real world.
Making valuable connections between the classroom and the world also ties into the skill of critical thinking. I want my students to be able to think critically about the concepts they learn in my classroom and go beyond the scope of the general facts. By exposing students to first hand scientific phenomena and supplying them rich experiences students can look beyond the general concept or problem and through inquiry, investigate further into the idea. To be good at critical thinking students must also be able to look at a topic from multiple angles. Being able to look at an idea from different points will allow students to look at the whole picture of the idea not just one small part.
As a future teacher I plan to provide my students with a positive learning environment that will create intrinsic motivation, meet each student’s learning needs, and encourage students to take risks and ask questions without the fear of criticism from their peers. My approach to teaching involves taking the prior knowledge my students already have from previous years, addressing/correcting the common misconceptions, and building on that foundation with new concepts and ideas that will give students a wider breadth of knowledge about science along with a scientific perspective. I plan on being sensitive to my students’ academic needs by helping them to further develop and improve their various skills and talents that they both excel in and that need improvement. By the end of the academic school year I want my students to have the ability to make relevant connections between science and the outside world and apply it to their everyday lives. I also hope that by sharing my own personal experiences, and my passion for science and learning, that I can inspire my students to become lifelong learners who are continuously seeking to know more about the world around them.
Reading and writing skills are important not only in science, but also in every other content area as well as life. In my classroom I plan to use strategies to help students improve their reading comprehension and content knowledge by having them summarize subtopics, and use thinking maps as a way to organize their thoughts based on the type of material they are reading. Through the use of thinking maps students can also increase their metacognition by mapping out the way in which they view concepts that they have recently read. I also plan on using prewriting strategies to break down the writing process for students and allow them to follow the step by step procedure for both in general and in science. For students to become good writers they need to understand the writing process.
I will also provide my students with a variety of phenomena that will require investigation and questioning to determine the how and why behind it. One of the most important skills that a student can obtain is the ability to inquire and ask questions. Participating in scientific inquiry will contribute to the students’ inquiry development by requiring them to ask questions, discover answers, and ask more questions based on their answers. Students will be able make connections between the various phenomena and nature. By exposing students to such phenomena allows them to make connections to the outside world and also apply their knowledge to the outside world. Students should be able to build on their previous knowledge, make connections, and apply what they are learning in the classroom to the outside world. Having the ability to make these connections and apply them leads students to further their inquiry and knowledge. The more connections the students make between the classroom and the world, the more knowledge they will accumulate. Through scientific inquiry, my students will be able to take control of their own learning by navigating their direction through the questions they ask and the discoveries they make. By providing my students with hands on, self-discovery, and exploration activities students will be able to think like a scientist.
Lastly, I also want my students to be able to think critically and go beyond the scope of the general facts. I want them to build on their previous knowledge, make connections, and apply what they are learning in the classroom to the outside world. In order to do this I will provide my students with many open ended questions where there is no right or wrong answer. These types of questions will allow students to combine their prior knowledge and new knowledge and apply it to the real world.
Making valuable connections between the classroom and the world also ties into the skill of critical thinking. I want my students to be able to think critically about the concepts they learn in my classroom and go beyond the scope of the general facts. By exposing students to first hand scientific phenomena and supplying them rich experiences students can look beyond the general concept or problem and through inquiry, investigate further into the idea. To be good at critical thinking students must also be able to look at a topic from multiple angles. Being able to look at an idea from different points will allow students to look at the whole picture of the idea not just one small part.
As a future teacher I plan to provide my students with a positive learning environment that will create intrinsic motivation, meet each student’s learning needs, and encourage students to take risks and ask questions without the fear of criticism from their peers. My approach to teaching involves taking the prior knowledge my students already have from previous years, addressing/correcting the common misconceptions, and building on that foundation with new concepts and ideas that will give students a wider breadth of knowledge about science along with a scientific perspective. I plan on being sensitive to my students’ academic needs by helping them to further develop and improve their various skills and talents that they both excel in and that need improvement. By the end of the academic school year I want my students to have the ability to make relevant connections between science and the outside world and apply it to their everyday lives. I also hope that by sharing my own personal experiences, and my passion for science and learning, that I can inspire my students to become lifelong learners who are continuously seeking to know more about the world around them.